I Promise
by pony-girl298
Summary: Cassiopeia Malfoy doesn't want her brother to go to Hogwarts. It's not fair. - Next Gen. One-shot, but I might write more with these characters if I get inspired


Nine-year-old Cassiopeia Malfoy lay on her stomach under her bed. She'd been there since just after breakfast. She was very comfortable. The bed was high, she was small, and the carpet was thick. She had a small stack of snacks brought up by the house elves. The elves had also brought her favourite book and arranged the window drapes so that there was enough light under the bed to read by.

She was warm and cozy and comfortable.

All in all, Cassie was sure nothing could make her to come out from under the bed. Not even her older brother's impending departure for Hogwarts.

There was a gentle knock at the door followed by the sound of footsteps across the carpet. Mummy's feet and ankles appeared in Cassie's vision.

"Darling, are you dressed?"

Cassie didn't answer.

Mummy sighed. Her knees and then her face appeared in the gap between the bed and the floor. Cassie stared at her.

"Cassie, you need to get dressed. We're leaving for the train station in half an hour."

Cassie frowned. She buried her face in her arms.

"Scorpius leaves for Hogwarts today. Don't you want to say goodbye?"

"NO!" Cassie yelled into her arms.

Mummy sighed again. She stood up and left the room.

Cassie squeezed her eyes shut tight. She wouldn't say goodbye. She wouldn't get dressed. She wouldn't come out.

She wouldn't.

The door opened again, no knock this time. Cassie listened to the feet walk to the far side of the bed. The carpet shifted. She felt someone wiggle up next to her.

Cassie opened her eyes and found Scorpius staring at her. Scorpius was under the bed with her. He smiled. She didn't.

He nodded to the plate of biscuits. "Can I have one?"

Cassie nodded. Scorpius took a bite, closed his eyes, and sighed.

"Oh, I'm going to miss Toola's biscuits," he said referring to their house elf. "I suppose I could ask her for the recipe and give it to the elves at Hogwarts, but it won't be the same."

He glanced at Cassie but she was stubbornly not looking at him.

He flipped her book over and read the cover.

"The Tales of Beedle the Bard! You should have called me sooner. Reading that book under your bed is our tradition, remember?"

Of course Cassie remembered. Scorpius had read her every story in this book when she was little. They'd snuggled under the bed with pillows and a glowing jar from Mummy or Daddy every night before bed.

By the time he'd finished the book, Cassie had learned to read, and she proceeded to read the stories to him.

"Can I tell you a secret?" he whispered.

"Okay," she said.

"I'm scared." He looked at her and, this time, Cassie looked at him too. "Don't tell Dad."

"Why?"

"Because he keeps saying how excited he was to start Hogwarts. He wasn't scared when he went. But I am, and..." Scorpius looked away.

Cassie stared at her brother's profile. She couldn't see his eyes, but she knew they were the same sky blue colour as hers. They both had their mother's eyes and their father's hair. The Malfoy Hair, Grandad called it.

She reached out and touched his hair.

He looked back at her and smiled.

"It's okay," she said, trying to sound grown up. "You can write to me every day. And I'll write to you every day."

"I suppose you're right. And I'll be home at Christmas."

Cassie nodded. "You need to take pictures for me," she said. "Take pictures of everything. Everything! All right? That way, I'll know where everything is when I go to Hogwarts and- and I won't get lost. All right? Promise?"

He laughed. "I promise. But I doubt you'd get lost. You're smarter than me."

Cassie giggled. "You're silly."

"No, I'm not."

"Yes, you are."

"No, I'm not."

"Yes, you are. But it's all right. I'm silly too."

Mummy's voice echoed through the house.

"TEN MINUTES!"

"We'd better get downstairs," Scorpius said. He started to wiggle out from under the bed. Cassie grabbed his elbow.

"You promised, right? That means you have to, no matter what." She stared fiercely at him.

He twisted backwards and planted a kiss on her cheek. "I promise."

Cassie smiled. "Ok. Let's go."

* * *

Hope you liked it.

Might write more about them. I like the idea of a little sister for Scorpius. In J.K. Rowling's epilogue, we only see Scorpius, but there's nothing to say that a younger sibling hadn't just wandered off.


End file.
